Top Mobile Apps: January 2026

In January 2026, global mobile app performance was dominated by a mix of entertainment, social networking and subscription services. NetShort reclaimed the top iOS ad‑spending spot, while ChatGPT surged in South Korea with 3.4 billion minutes of usage time—an eight‑fold year‑over‑year increase that propelled it back to the App Store’s revenue leader. Threads eclipsed 400 million monthly active users, surpassing X and positioning itself for further expansion. Google One leveraged a 50 % discount on its 2 TB and AI Pro plans, integrating Gemini into family subscriptions to drive revenue growth.

The top 20 revenue‑generating apps on the App Store highlighted ChatGPT’s dominance in Korea and Paramount+’s price hike following its Q3 earnings, which boosted subscription income. On Google Play, Google One’s promotional strategy and NetShort’s promotion of over 2,200 dramas—up 10.1 % month‑over‑month—catapulted the latter into the top 20 download list.

Download leaders mirrored revenue trends but also revealed geographic nuances: Threads’ 141.5 million daily active users on iOS outpaced X, while Temu captured 20.34 million Polish users (+12.6 % YoY), overtaking Allegro as the country’s leading e‑commerce platform. NetShort’s Android download surge was driven by its drama promotion strategy.

The analysis underscores that while high download volumes do not guarantee top revenue, they signal strong user demand and market positioning. Publishers can align user acquisition tactics with monetization objectives by monitoring both download trajectories and revenue outcomes across App Store and Google Play.